Third Annual Community Engagement Conference: Partnering to Improve Health: the Science of Community Engagement Natcher Conference Center National Institutes of Health Bethesda, MD May 13 -14, 2010 Synopsis The CTSA Community Engagement Key Function Committee recognizes the on-going need to continue the dialogue on community engagement and health. The next steps proposed at the 2009 conference, as well as the conference evaluations, identified issues for further discussion: clarifying the scientific basis for community and practice engagement; building infrastructure; informing federal agencies of the importance of re-shaping funding mechanisms to facilitate community engagement; and improving methods of measuring outcomes and processes of community engagement as it affects community health. To advance work in these areas we plan to request funding for annual conferences over the next five years. We propose the topic of Partnering to Improve Health: the Science of Community Engagement as the focus for the May 13-14, 2010 conference, which will again bring both academic and practice researchers along with community representatives to address issues and advance the dialogue around the scientific foundation of community engagement.